Belichick: "Personally Disappointed and Hurt"

Receive the latest local updates in your inbox

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick publicly addressed the arrest of former Patriot Aaron Hernandez for the first time on Wednesday and said he was "shocked" and "dissapointed" by what he learned in this case.

Hernandez was arrested last month and has pleaded not guilty to murder in the death of Odin Lloyd, a 27-year-old Boston semi-professional football player whose body was found June 17 in an industrial park in North Attleboro near Hernandez's home. He had been shot five times.

NFL Cheerleaders Do Halloween

The team released Hernandez on the same day he was arrested and later held a jersey swap event for people to turn in their Hernandez jerseys and exchange them for another shirt.

NFL Cheerleaders: Super Bowl Edition

Belichick said he was advised to address the issue once, so he is not expected to comment further on the ongoing case.

Belichick said he was out of the country when he learned that Hernandez was under investigation. After consulting with team ownership, the team acted "swiftly and decisively," Belichick said.

“This case involved an individual who happened to be a New England Patriot … This does not in any way reflect the way the New England Patriots want to do things,” Belichick said.

“I am personally disappointed and hurt in a situation like this,” he added.

Belichick went into a little detail on what the team evaluates before signing a player onto the roster, and that includes looking into the player's history, including his family, where he grew up, his high school and college experience, maurity, intelligence and more.